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University  of  California  •  Berkeley 


Contention 
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r^:":::::.:::::::"::::.-::::"-A    ISSUED   BY   ::^::::::"":"—~". 

THE  PUBLICITY  LEAGUE 

of  THE  CHAMBER  OF  COMMERCE 

SAN    ANTONIO,   TEXAS 


PUBLICATIONS  OF  THE 
PUBLICITY  LEAGUE 


San  Antonio,  the  Beautiful 

Edition  de  Luxe 
A  Bock  for  the  Tourist 

FARM  FACTS 

A  Book  of  facts  about  farming  in  the 
San  Antonio  country 

San  Antonio— 

the  Convention  City 


IN  PREPARATION 

Commercial  San  Antonio 

A  Book  for  Investors 


For  Further  information  address 

JOHN  B.  CARR1NGTON 

Secretary  Chamber  of  Commerce 
San  Antonio,  Texas 


tf)e  Contention  Cttp 


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AN  ANTONIO  is  a  convention  city  par 
excellence.  This  is  true  be- 
a,use  San  Antonio  is  different 
from  any  other  city  in  the 
United  States.  It  has 
an  interest,  atmos- 
phere and  individuality 
all  its  owtf(V>leaven  of  the  Latin  pop- 
ulation gives  a  touch  of  the  holiday  spirit 
even  to  the  working  days.  San  Antonio 
breathes  of  fiestas  and  festivals  and  its  very 
name  is  suggestive  of  a  good  time. 

The  picturesque  beauty  of  San  Antonio 
is  a  joy  forever.  Its  historic  buildings  are  a 
never  failing  source  of  interest.  The  venerable 
Alamo,  the  cradle  of  Texas  liberty  that  wan 
the  scene  of  one  of  the  most  heroic  episodes  in 
the  world's  history,  is  in  itself  a  shrine  that  i& 
worth  a  journey  to  San  Antonio  ! 
to  visit. 

Outside  the  city  four  an- 
cient missions,  partly  in  ruins, 
recall  the  glamour  and  romance 
of  the  old  Spanish  days.  A 
beautiful  macadam  road  lined 
with,  big  trees  leads  to  them, 


Driveway  in 

Bracken  ridge 

Park 


winding  through  green  fields  and  along  the 
meandering  San  Antonio  river  and  making  the 
trip  a  rare  pleasure. 

The  old  San  Fernando  Cathedral  with  its 
ancient  pictures  and  relics  is  also  eloquent  of 
old  San  Antonio  and  the  days  when  the  Spanish 
grandees  touched  elbows  with  the  American 
buccaneers  in  the  picturesque  plazas. 

Fort    Sam    Houston,   where    the     Govern- 
ment   has    spent    about    three    million     dollars 
in    building  the   second  largest    army    post    in 
America   is   also   worthy   of   the   tourist's   visit. 
4 


Here  the  bugle's  shrill  clarion,  the  roll  of  drums 
and  the  tramp  of  armed  men  reproduce  the 
pomp  and  pageantry  of  war  and  the  visitor 
can  get  an  accurate  conception  of  that  splendid 
fighting  machine,  the  United  States  army. 

The  San  Antonio  river  winds  through 
the  heart  of  the  city  and  is  spanned  by  dozens 
of  bridges  and  along  most  of  its  course  is  lined 
with  bi^  trees  bringing  bits  of  sylvan  beauty 
into  the  heart  of  the  city.  In  addition  parks, 
and  plazas  are  scattered  throughout  the  city. 
Of  these  the  most  beautiful  is  Alamo  Plaza  on 
which  faces  the  famous  chapel;  Travis  Square 
where  the  Confederate  monument  towers  its 
graceful  height;. Main  Plaza  on  which  the  San 


The  Quadrangle       Fort  Sam  Houston 


Fernando  Cathedral  and  the  Courthouse  face, 
and  Military  Plaza,  in  the  center  of  which 
stands  the  graceful  City  Hall. 

San  Pedro  Park  is  a  beautiful  woodland 
of  about  forty  acres  where  the  San  Pedro  Springs 
gush  from  the  rocks.  Brackenridge  Park  con- 
sists of  about  two  hundred  acres  of  native 
woodland.  Here  big  pecan  and  live-oak 

Confederate  Monument 
in  Travis  Park 


trees    overarch    winding    roadways    and     trail 
the    banks    of    the    San    Antonio    river. 

In  addition,  San  Antonio  has  about  185 
miles  of  beautiful  roadways  which  wind  past 
meadow  and  farm  to  the  upland  hills  in  the 
northwest  where  the  mountains  begin.  No 
city  in  America  has  more  beautiful  automobile 
roads  through  a  greater  variety  of  scenery. 


First 
Mission 


Last,  but  not  least,  San  Antonio  is  a  city 
with  all  the  city  conveniences;  magnificent 
modern  hotels  which  provide  every  luxury  of 
equipment  and  of  the  culinary  art.  It  has 
numerous  theatres  and  places  of  amusement;  it 
has  churches  and  schools,  and  a  complete  street 
car  system  whose  transfers  carry  you  all  over 
the  city.  Its  water  supply,  drawn  from  thir- 
teen artesian  wells  at  a  depth  of  1200  to  1600 
feet  is  the  best  and  the  most  wholesome  to  be 
had  in  America.  The  water  is  sparkling,  cold 
and  delicous  to  the  taste  and  coming  from  such 
a  depth  is  beyond  the  reach  of  all  germs  or 
impurities. 

These  things,  combined  with  a  climate 
unsurpassed,  make  San  Antonio  the  convention 
city  of  America.  During  eight  months  of  the 

I 


year  the  climate  of  San  Antonio  has  a  rare 
quality  that  is  unmatched.  Even  in  mid -win- 
ter, days  of  perfect  sunshine  make  out-door 
life  delightful.  The  four  summer  months  have 
the  heat  tempered  by  a  continuous  gulf  breeze 
and  with  cool  delightful  nights  make  life  always 
enjoyable. 


Second  Mission 


The  people  of  San  Antonio  are  hospitable 
and  cordial.  The  stranger  within  our  gate  is 
always  welcome.  Even  the  casual  man  on  the 
street  will  go  out  of  his  way  to  direct  you 
where  you  want  to  go  and  to  show  you  any 
simple  courtesies  in  his  power.  San  Antonio 
has  ample  halls  for  the  holding  of  conventions 
and  any  convention  that  contemplates  coming 
to  San  Antonio  is  invited  to  .correspond  with 
the  Secretary  of  the  Chamber  of  Commerce 
who  will  take  pleasure  in  arranging  the  detail 
for  the  officers. 

San  Antonio  wants  you  to  come  and  come 
again.  You  are  welcome  here  and  the  latch- 
string  is  always  out. 


s 


San  Antonio  stands  at  the  junction  of 
the  great  highways  North  and  South  and  East 
and  West.  It  is  very  easy  for  conventions 
that  meet  here  to  wind  up  in  side  excursions 
into  Old  Mexico  where  the  visitor  can  come  in 
contact  with  the  oldest  civilization  on  the 
American  Continent  and  can  inspect  at  first 
hand  the  remains  of  the  Aztecs,  on  which  is 
builded  the  modern  Latin  civilization  of  Mexico, 
and  the  visitor  can  get  all:  the  pleasure  of 
foreign  travel  without  having  to  go  very  far 
away  from  home. 


Third  Mission 


It  is  only  a  few  hours  ride  from  San  Antonio 
to  the  Gulf.  Here  the  convention  delegate 
can  rest  from  his  labors  and  get  splendid  fishing 
and  surf  bathing.  It  is  only  a  few  hours  ride 
from  San  Antonio  to  the  Llano  River  and  the 
Nueces  River  where  the  finest  fresh  water 
fishing  in  America  can  be  had,  or  in  season 
quail  shooting,  duck  shooting,  deer  hunting 
and  the  like. 


Fourth  Mission 


San  Antonio  is  the  half  way  house  to  the 
Pacific  Slope  and  the  visitor  from  the  North 
and  East  can  return  through  New  Orleans  and 
the  picturesque  Old  South,  and  go  North 
through  Kansas  City  and  Denver,  through  the 
heart  of  the  Golden  West.  So,  from  the  traveler's 
point  of  view,  San  Antonio  is  rigLtinthe  center 
of  thing's. 

10 


Commercial  £an  Antonio 


Against  the  historic  background  of  the 
storied  past,  modern  San  Antonio  has  grown 
up  a  busy  commercial  city,  developing  more 
rapidly  than  any  other  city  in  the  Southwest, 
and  owing  to  the  fact  that  her  tributary  territory 
is  but  yet  partially  developed,  possesses  almost 
unlimited  opportunities  for  future  growth. 
San  Antonio  stands  now  where  Los  Angeles 
stood  some  six  or  seven  years  ago,  and  competent 
and  conservative  judges  predict  the  same 
phenomenal  development  for  this  city  in  the 
near  future. 

San  Antonio  is  a  jobbing  and  wholesale 
center,  and  does  the  distributing  for  a  territory 
as  large  as  the  state  of  Ohio.  It  has  also  a 
large  business  with  Mexico.  New  railroads 
projected  through  this  San  Antonio  territory 
will  further  develop  that  country  as  well  as 
this  city,  and  bring  new  opportunities  for 
business  and  investment. 

San  Antonio  has  214  manufacturing  plants, 
large  and  small.  Its  two  leading  breweries  are 
the  largest  of  the  kind  in  the  South  and  employ 
over  nine  hundred  men.  It  has  large  foundries 
and  machine  shops,  cotton  compresses  and  oil 
11 


mills,  soap  and  saddle  factories,  food  product 
factories,  clothing  factories,  sash  and  blind 
factories  and  other  enterprises.  The  develop- 
ment of  an  oil  field  adjacent  to  the  city  and  the 
opening  up  of  fine  deposits  of  lignite  coal  by  the 
projected  railroads  will  do  much  to  develop  a 
manufacturing  industry  here. 


A  Bird's-eye- 

San  Antonio  is  the  shopping  center  of  the 
Southwest,  and  has  some  of  the  largest  retail 
establishments  south  of  Saint  Louis.  Its  mer- 
chants import  goods  from  all  over  the  world, 
and  in  the  quality  and  quantity  of  goods  dis- 
played, as  well  as  reasonableness  of  price,  offer 
the  shopper  exceptional  advantages. 

In  percentage  of  gain  in  new  buildings 
San  Antonio  stands  third  in  the  list  of  American 
ities.  Three  splended  new  hotels  were  com- 
pleted in  19u9  and  three  new  office  buildings 
of  from  six  to  ten  stories  in  height  are  now 
rapidly  nearing  completion.  Store  buildings, 

12 


apartment  houses  and  residences  have  been 
constructed  everywhere  in  the  city.  San  Antonio  ' 
real  estate  has  shown  a  steady  appreciation  in 
value  and  business  properties  in  this  city  offer 
a  most  stable  and  profitable  investment,  one 
that  is  certain  to  increase  in  value  with  the 
growth  of  the  city. 


•  of  San  Antonio 

San  Antonio  has  six  national  banks,  three 
state  banks  one  of  which  does  a  trust  company 
business,  two  trust  companies,  and  four  private 
banks,  The  aggregate  deposits  are  estimated 
by  the  bankers  at  between  fifteen  and  sixteen 
millions.  The  San  Antonio  banks  issue  letters 
of  credit  and  traveller's  checks  and  buy  and 
sell  foreign  exchar 


13 


San  Antonio  has  the  best  hotels  and  more 
extensive  hotel  accommodations  than  any  city 
in  the  Southwest.  This  city  has  in  The  Gunter, 
St.  Anthony  arid  the  Menger  three  modern  and 
up-to-date  hotels,  which  will  compare  favorably 
with  any  in  the  country.  In  the  Hot  Wells 
Hotel  and  bath-house,  just  outside  of  the  city, 
is  a  suburban  resort  with  splendid  sulphur  baths 
easily  accessible  by  street  car  lines.  Beautiful  golf 
links  laid  out  along  the  San  Antonio  River  in 
eight  of  the  old  Missions  form  one  of  the  most 
attractive  features  of  this  hotel.  In  hotels  like 
the  Hutchins  and  the  Nueces,  there  are  smaller 
family  hotels  which  are  elegant  and  delightful. 
Among  the  other  well  known  hotels  of  San  An- 
tonio may  be  mentioned;  The  Bexar,  The  Ange- 
lus,  The  New  Maverick,  The  Crockett.  The  city 
also  has  a  great  many  private  boarding  houses  of 
the  highest  quality  and  many  apartment  houses, 
such  as:  Terrell  Flats,  Clerc  Apartments,  Gurden 
Apartments,  and  numerous  others.  A  list  of 
hotels,  apartment  houses  arid  restau- 
rants with  their  addresses  follows  in 
the  rear  of  this  book  together  with 
their  rates.  At  Sutherlond  Springs, 
thirty  miles  from  the  city  are  splen- 
did mineral  springs  and  baths  and  a 
delightful  hotel. 

14 


The  Menger  Hotel 

Though  the  oldest  hostlery  in  San  Antonio 
and  probably  in  Southwest  Texas,  the  Menger 
Hotel  is  still  one  of  the  most  modern,  having 
undergone  a  few  months  ago  a  thorough  ren- 
ovation. The  hotel  was  founded  in  the  sixties 
by  one  of  the  first  German  pioneers  and  has 
since  then  enjoyed  a  very  enviable  reputation. 
It  is  located  in  the  center  of  the  city  and  faces 
Alamo  Plaza,  one  of  San  Antonio's  beauty  spots. 


The  Menger 

Its  general  architectural  character,  patio,  large 
and  airy  halls  and  corridors,  give  it  a  distinctly 
Southern  stamp,  and  the  old  timer  anxious  to 
enjoy  all  that  is  modern  in  the  quiet,  peaceful 
15 


air  of  yesterday  could  hardly  find  a  better 
place.  Both  rooming  ,  accommodations  "and 
cuisine  will  satisfy  the  most  exacting. 


The  St.  Anthony  Hotel. 

This  truly  metropolitan  establishment 
stands  opposite  Travis  Park  in  quiet  surround- 
ings, one  block  from  San  Antonio's  busiest 
thoroughfare,  Houston  Street.  The  hotel  rep- 
resents an  investment  of  nearly  $2,000,000 
and  has  been  claimed  on  good  authority  to  be 
the  finest  establishment  of  its  kind  in  the  entire 
South.  Its  spacious  lobbies,  loggias,  dining  halls, 
ball  room  and  Roman  court  are  excelled  by  few 
hotels  in  the  United  States  in  either  size  or 
beauty.  The  St.  Anthony  is  equipped  with 
The  St.  Anthony 


every  modern  feature  tnat  goes  to  add  to  the 
traveler's  and  tourist's  comfort  and  the  opinion 
of  the  fastidious  is  that  its  service  could  not  be 
improved  upon,  a  fact  which  is  amply  demon- 
strated by  the  circumstance  that  after  less  than 
id 


one  year  of  operation  it  was  decided  to  add  to 
the  original  structure  an  annex  more  than 
doubling  its  rooming  capacity. 


The  Qunter  Hotel. 


This,  San  Antonio's  latest  hotel  acquisi- 
tion, stands  at  the  corner  of  Houston  and  St. 
Mary's  streets  and  past  it  floods  the  city's 
busiest  life.  Building  and  appointments  are 
of  the  most  modern  type  and  represent  a  very 
happy  effort  in  combining  metropolitan  hotel 
architecture  with  the  city's  climate.  Though  a 
great  deal  of  space  had  to  be  sacrificed  and 
large  expenses  incurred,  its  builders  wanted  an 
establishment  suited  to  climatic  conditions  and 
17 


met  very  fine  success;  in  fact  the  Gunter  is 
looked  upon  today  as  the  ideal  hotel  structure 
for  southern  latitudes.  Its  foyers,  lobby,  dining 
hall,  parlors  and  corridors  would  be  hard  to 
surpass  in  either  spaciousness  or  beauty  of 
decoration.  The  service  of  the  hotel  is  ex- 
cellent and  the  establishment  has  been  a  success 
from  the  day  it  opened  its  doors — a  few  months 
ago. 


Population    110,000. 

The  center  of  the  largest  undeveloped 
territory  in  the  United  States. 

Bank  clearings  amount  to  $150,000,000 
annually. 

Has    the    best   and    purest   artesian    water 
supply    in    the    country. 

18 


The  Crockett 


by  none  on 


12  to  the 


Has  a  climate  that  is  exc< 
the     North     American     co 

Its   mortality   rai- 
thousand     per     annum, 

Has  the  finest  hotels  in  the  entire  South- 
west. 

Has  the  finest  examples  of  Spanish  Missions 
in  the    western    hemisphere. 

Is   the   center  of  education   in   the   South- 
west   and    for    Mexico. 

Is    the    social    center    of    Texas. 

Stands  third  in  building  operations  in  the 
United    States. 

The  value  of  buildings  completed    in    1909 
exceeds    the    sum    of    $4,250,000. 
19 


Its  real  estate  transfers  in  1909  reached  the 
total  of  $14,217,394. 

Post  office  receipts;in  1909  were  $243,880.53. 

Assessments    in    1909    were    $73,714,090. 

Its  total  tax  rate  is  only  $1.42  per  centum. 

Its  cost  only  $716,646  to  run  the  city  in 
1910. 

Parks  and  plazas  have  an  area  of  349  acres 
and  are  the  most  beautiful  anywhere. 

Has  75  miles  of  electric  street  railroads 
with  free  transfers  to  any  part  of  the  city. 

Has    a    trade    territory    of    600,000   square 

miles. 

20 


Is  located  in  a  rich  agricultural  district 
which  is  rapidly  developing. 

Is  the  trade  and  tourist  gateway  to  Mexico. 

Has  the  second  largest  army  post  in  the 
United  States,  Fort  Sam  Houston. 

Its  winter  compares  well  with  advanced 
spring  in  the  North. 

No   heat  prostrations   during  the  summer. 

Only    one    cloudy    day    in    five. 

Has  the  finest  hot  sulphur  wells  in  the 
United  States. 


foil  £ljouU)  g>te  in 
Antonio 

The     Alamo — East    side     Alamo     Plaza. 
Federal    Building — North   side   Alamo    Plaza. 
San  Fernando  Cathedral — West  side  Main  Plaza. 
County   Court    House — South  side   Main    Plaza. 
City    Hall — Center    Military    Plaza. 
Capilla  de  los  Milagros  (Wonder  Chapel — Take 

West  End  Car.   Located  at  115  Ruiz  street. 
The  Missions — Concepcion  de  la  Acuna,  San  Jose, 

San    Juan    and    Espada. — Take    hacks. 
Fair  Grounds,  Hot  Sulphur  Wells,  Insane    Hospi= 

tal,    Ostrich    Farm — Take    cars    on      Navarro 

street,    corner    East    Houston   street. 

Maverick  Park,  Brackenridge  Park,  Convent  of 
the  Incarnate  Word,  Country  Club,  Golf  Links, 
Alamo  Heights,  Davy  Crockett's  Home,  Head 


of    the    River    and    Palisades— Take       River 
avenue  car  on  East  Houston  street  and  Ave.  C. 

Fort  Sam  Houston,  West  Texas  Military  In- 
institute — Take  Nolan  or  Army  Post  car  on 
East  Houston  street. 

U.  S.  Arsenal — Take  South  Flores  car  West  on 

Houston    street. 
Old  Spanish  Cemetery — (San  Fernando) — Take 

I.  &  G.  N.  car  West  on  Houston  street.  Get 

oil    at    Pinto. 

City  Cemetery— Take  S.  P.  Depot  car  on  East 
Houston  street. 

St.  Louis'  College,  Peacock's  College  for  Boys, 
Lakeside  Classical  Institute,  San  Antonio  Col- 
lege for  Girls,  West  End  Lake  and  Park,  Protes- 
tant Orphan's  Home — Take  West  End  car 
West  on  Houston  street. 

San  Pedro  Park,  Electric  Park,  Base  Ball  Park, 
Laurel  Heights — Take  San  Pedro  car  West 
on  Houston  street. 

Crockett  Square — Take  Tobin  Hill  car  West  on 
Houston  street;  get  off  at  Cypress  street,  and 
go  one  block  West. 

Franklin  Square — Take  I.  &  G.  N.  car  WTcst,  get 
off  at  San  Saba  street. 

Travis  Park — Two  blocks  Northwest  of  Alamo 
Plaza. 

Madison  Square — Take  Tobin  Hill  car  West  on 
Houston  street. 

22 


Irrigated  Gardens— Take  San  Fernando  car 
West  on  Houston  street. 

Main  Plaza,  Military  Plaza,  Washington  Square, 
Milam  Square,  Market  House  and  Convention 
Hall,  Santa  Rosa  Hospital,  Catholic  Orphanage, 
Prospect  Heights,  Academy  of  Our  Lady  of 
the  Lake— Take  I.  &  G.  N.  car  West  on 
Houston  street. 

Chamber  of  Commerce— 106  Crockett  street. 


Angelus  Hotel,  Charles  Christiansen  Prop., 
Alamo  &  Commerce  Streets.  Rates  $1.00  a 
day  and  up.  European. 

Bexar  Hotel,  Alfred  Sanner,  Prop.,  327  E. 
Houston  Street.  American,  $2.00  to  $3.00  a 
day,  European,  $1.00  to  $1.50. 

Cierc  Apartments,  Miss  Jane  Clerc,  314  Third 
St.  Rates  $1.00  to  $2.50  per  day. 

Crockett  Hotel,  Miss  F.  Pegg;  Crockett  and  Naccg- 
doches  Sts.  European,  $1.00  to  $2.50  per  day. 

Fairmount  Hotel,  Owen  Reilly,  Prop.,  359  E. 
Commerce  St.  European,  $1.00  a  day,  Ameri- 
can, $2.00  a  day.  Special  rates  by  month. 

Gunter  Hotel,  Gunter  Hotel  Co.,  East  Houston 
St.  Rates  $1.50  a  day  and  up.  European. 

Gurden   Apartments,    B.  F.  Gurden,  Prop.,  902 
Avenue   C.     Rates  $30.00  a  month  and   up. 
23 


Hotel  Maverick,  Mrs.  Mattie  Cox  &  Son,  Prop., 
C.  A.  Grady,  Mgr.,  330  E.  Houston  street, 
European  $1.00  and  up. 

Hot  Wells  Hotel,  Dr.  Cockrell,  Mgr.,  Hot  Wells 
Car  Line,  Rates  American  $3.00  per  day 
and  up. 

Hutchins  Hotel,  M.  B.  Hutchins,  Prop.,  205 
Garden  St.  Rates  $2.50  and  up  per  day; 
$15.00  and  up  a  week.  American. 

Losoya  Hotel,  T.  A.  Brashear,  Mgr.,  125  Losoya 
street,  European  $1.00  per  day  and  up. 

Menger  Hotel,  Wm.  Bruce,  Mgr.,  Alamo  Plaza. 
American,  $3.00  to  $5.00  a  day;  special 
rates  by  week  or  month. 

Savoy  Hotel,  Geo.  Wilhite,  Mgr.,  122  West. 
Houston  St.,  European  $1.00  per  day  and  up. 

Sterling  Hotel,  J.  E.  Hodges,  Mgr.,  South  Alamo 
street,  American  $2.00  per  day,  $30.00  per 
month  and  up. 

St.  Anthony  Hotel,  F.  M.  Swearingen  &  Son, 
Prop.,  Travis  Park.  Rates  $2  a  day  and  up. 

Victoria  Hotel,  319  St.  Marys  St.,  Mrs.  G.  E. 
Wiseman,  Mgr.,  American  $2.  per  day  and  up. 


Four  Seasons  Restaurant,  314  W.  Commerce  St. 
Mission     Cafe,     506     E.     Houston     St. 
Matthews   Delicatessen,    222   Losoya   St. 
Original  Mexican   Restaurant,  115   Losoya   St. 
Riverside    Restaurant,    101    E.    Houston    St 
Saratoga    Restaurant,    228    E.    Houston    St 
24 


GUESSAZ    &    FERLET    CO..    S.    A 


